Last week, I got a call from a Spryfield resident complaining about "the creek at the end of River Road"---that is, MacIntosh Run, a creek that runs from Long Lake to Herring Cove. The caller said the creek had a bunch of garbage in it---shopping carts and the like---so I drove out today to have a look.
I'm quite familiar with MacIntosh Run---I've explored most of its length over the years, hiking an all purpose trail next to the creek at the Spryfield end, and more or less bush-whacking my way through the woods towards the Herring Cove end. (I understand the city has extended the trail considerably since i last visited.) A few years ago I went out behind the hockey arena and was distressed to find a lot of construction debris in the creek, presumably from a nearby subdivision going up in the area. And a couple of years ago, I found myself along MacIntosh Run again when I set out, successfully, in search of the origin of the Spryfield Fire.
Anyway, I'm happy to report that the creek and its adjoining trail are today in excellent condition. I don't know if the caller is all wet, or if city crews cleaned up the area over the last few days, but garbage is at a minimum, almost non-existent.
The trail, too, is graded and in good shape. I was on my lunch hour, and so only made it about three kilometres in, but everything looked great, throughout the length I walked.
I was also glad to see people using the trail---a couple of older couples, and a lot of teenagers. Some of the teenagers were of course smoking pot, but they were courteous and behaving themselves. (I'll never understand why people have such a problem with teenagers smoking pot in the woods; it gets them out in nature, they get some much needed unstructured time and they get to test limits and experience a relatively safe form of rebellion, ultimately making them better citizens. I wish there were more kids smoking pot in the woods, to be honest.)
All of which is to say, one of HRM's active transportation trails is a huge asset to Spryfield, and city crews are evidently keeping up on maintenance or responding to complaints in a timely manner. Good job!
